Although its lap times were quicker than they felt from the driver’s seat (within 1.5 seconds of the Aston and almost 4.0 seconds ahead of the next-quickest Alfa), they’d have been quicker still with better brakes and more performance-oriented all-wheel-drive tuning. “The car wouldn’t stop,” Pobst recalled. “There wasn’t enough bite, and the pedal was kind of soft. I think I lost a lot of time because I didn’t trust the brakes. It needs more power to the rear wheels to balance it.” He also found the shock damping inadequate and generally felt the RS badges wrote checks this chassis wasn’t cashing. “When I see ‘RS’ on an Audi, I have really high expectations. The TT RS is a huge disappointment. The compromises for comfort slow it down on track.”

Our judges agreed. Chris Walton wished the Audi was more amenable to lift-throttle rotation. Jethro Bovingdon concurred: “The balance is one-dimensional with almost zero throttle adjustability.” But Mark Rechtin found this trait reassuring. “Once you set your steering angle,” he said, “a grenade couldn’t throw it off its line.” Scott Evans postulated that its “super-consistent behavior and response” would be “perfect for beginners.” Still, in a head-to-head, Evans quipped: “Would I buy this over a Cayman at the same price? Not a chance.”

Everybody loved the Ur-Quattro-reminiscent five-banger’s snarl, though Erick Ayapana wished “the volume was cranked to 8—it’s at about 3.”

In short, the TT RS left us all wanting more … something. “It doesn’t actually need more power,” Ed Loh said. “But it needs to feel more powerful, sharper, more directed. Where’s the danger?”